1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a vending machine having a main door that is easily removable from the vending machine cabinet. More specifically, the invention is directed to a vending machine in which the main door can be removed without tools in order to minimize cabinet depth.
2. Related Art
In a conventional vending machine, the vandal panel is permanently attached to, and protrudes past the front of the cabinet. The lower hinge of the main door and the door lifter bracket rest on a base plate, which also extends past the front of the cabinet. Both of these features effectively increase cabinet depth, making it difficult, if not impossible, to locate the vending machine in a narrow passageway. Also, in a conventional vending machine, the upper hinge of the main door is held in place by five fasteners, and the inner door is mounted to the main door by two self-tapping screws. Removal of the main door from the cabinet requires removal of all five main door fasteners; and removal of the inner door from the main door requires removal of the self-tapping screws. Conversely, assembly of the main door to the cabinet and the inner door to the main door require re-installation of the fasteners and the self-tapping screws, respectively. Neither the fasteners nor the self-tapping screws can be removed or re-installed without the use of tools.
Although there are many examples of mechanisms designed to facilitate the installation and removal of doors and the like from cabinets, refrigerators, other enclosures, and support surfaces (see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,806,144 to Fries; U.S. Pat. No. 5,265,954 to Keil; U.S. Pat. No. 5,193,308 to Davidian; U.S. Pat. No. 4,620,392 to Kerpers et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,099,293 to Pittasch; U.S. Pat. No. 3,478,383 to Brooks; U.S. Pat. No. 3,270,462 to Obadal et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 2,385,169 to Stone; U.S. Pat. No. 1,564,668 to Hageman; U.S. Pat. No. 1,012,606 to Davis; and Pat. No. 42,764 to Harrington), the prior art does not provide any such mechanism adapted to permit the installation and removal of a main door of a vending machine quickly and without tools. It is to the solution of these, and other problems, to which the present invention is directed.
It is therefore a primary object of the present invention to provide a vending machine in which the vandal panel and the main door can be easily removed, particularly without the need to remove fasteners or use tools to effect removal of the vandal panel and the main door.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a vending machine in which the depth of the main door lower hinge is reduced.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a vending machine in which the inner door can easily be removed from the main door.
These and other objects of the invention are achieved through provision of a vending machine having a selectively removable main door that is assembled to the vending machine cabinet by upper and lower hinge assemblies that omit conventional fasteners that require tools for their installation and removal.
The upper hinge assembly includes a hinge plate that is selectively engageable with the main door and an upper hinge latch mechanism that is installed in the interior of the cabinet and that selectively mounts the hinge plate to the cabinet. The upper hinge latch mechanism includes a spring-biased plunger that is normally biased to engage the hinge plate. The lower hinge assembly includes a hinge base that is also selectively engageable with the main door and a lower hinge latch mechanism that is installed in the interior of the cabinet and that selectively retains the hinge base in the cabinet. The lower hinge latch mechanism includes a spring-biased pin that is normally biased to engage the hinge plate.
In one aspect of the invention, an inner door is provided over the inner face of the main door. An inner door hinge assembly hinges the inner door to the hinged side of the interior face of the main door along one side thereof and permits selective removal of the inner door from the main door without the use of tools or the removal of fasteners.
In another aspect of the invention, a vandal panel is positioned to cover the facing edges of the hinged sides of the main door and the cabinet when the main door is in the closed position. The vandal panel has upper and lower ends engaging the hinge plate and the lower hinge assembly, respectively, and is removable therefrom without the use of tools or the removal of fasteners.
In still another aspect of the invention, a door lifter mechanism is provided for supporting the weight of the main door while the main door is in the closed position, and for compensating for any sagging of the main door that may occur. The door lifter mechanism comprises a door lifter extending outwardly from the inner face of the main door and a door lifter bracket positioned in the cabinet to receive the door lifter bracket when the main door is in the closed position.
Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art upon a reading of this specification including the accompanying drawings.